November 13

Distance: 25.9 | Ascent: 2980′ | Descent: 4860′

Lunch: J – Thai peanut noodles (B), A – Peak butternut dal baht (A+)

Dinner: J – cheesy orzo (C) , A – Thai red curry (B+)

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Probably not. It’s hard.

Hiking is fun. It’s a great exercise. It is vastly more interesting than workouts at the gym. Hiking gives you a glimpse of beautiful things that even the best nature documentaries or landscape images can’t quite capture. The PCT winds through a lot of diverse and beautiful scenery. Occasionally the trail passes places that are kinda gross with litter or derelict human things (we don’t often take pictures of that because it’s gross). Hiking the full PCT is crazy. You should do it. Maybe just a little.

Along our journey, we’ve passed hundreds, maybe even thousands, of other hikers going in all sorts of directions. Most were out on the trail for a day or weekend, a normal amount of time. We’ve met people of all ages, from children to folks in their 70s and maybe even 80s. We’ve met people of all races, genders, and identities. The trail doesn’t discriminate. Everyone is out here to enjoy the same thing during their fleeting moment in this world.

Other hikers are kind and generous, always willing to lend a hand or motivation. We’ve met all sorts of interesting people. We’ve seen a lot of good in people. We’ve made good friends along the way. Even people we met only once or twice before will embrace us like old friends. There’s a mutual respect and admiration for all on the trail. Egos are put away and everyone can be their truest selves. It’s a culture that we haven’t experienced anywhere else. This hike has restored some faith in the goodness of humanity.

You should hike the PCT. Or maybe start a bit smaller. You should hike any trail near you. You should embrace the outdoors in all conditions. You should learn about and care for public spaces. You should treasure the natural world. Yes, towns and buildings and beds and cheeseburgers and all the things we have in our civilized world are nice. We often yearn for them. But climbing a hill, towering above cities, walking through forests, finding and purifying your own water, carrying all of your possessions on your back, seeing nature untouched by humans, and walking from one arbitrary border line to another offers a perspective that’s unmatched. And, it makes you see how special the natural world is and why it should be conserved.

Maybe don’t hike the whole PCT at once. There were countless times we wished we could have stopped at a great campsite rather than pushing on. There were many sidetrails we didn’t have time to go down. There were days we wanted to stay put, just relaxing and soaking in our surroundings. Doing the whole thing meant that we missed out on some opportunities in pursuit of the one big accomplishment. Perhaps you should section hike. Do a chunk here or there. Maybe skip some of the gross parts of trail (we’ll tell you where if you ask). The PCT has five major sections: Washington, Oregon, NorCal, the Sierras, and SoCal. We’ve met people who do one of those five sections every year or so. We’ve also met people who use their vacation time from work to do even smaller sections. However you slice it, there’s a lot of trail. It can be hiked in nearly any order, any direction, any season. Doing it all in one go is crazy.

With that being said, we woke up in our camp. We slept in because, well, we could. It was cold in the morning, even though we were in the desert. The desert is not what we thought it would be. We eventually braved the cold. We broke camp and headed out with TimTam in our party – hiking with friends is fun!

We saw a rancho! It was a big bad boy! TimTam held his phone near the ground to photograph him (next 2 photos), and rancho was ready to fight!

When we got to Boulder Oaks Campground, we were surprised by two of our friends who had finished two day prior. They gave us some trail magic: fruit, soft drinks, and hard drinks. That was the perfect mix of magical foods. And, it was good to see them again. Then two friends who had been hiking just a mile behind us joined! Together we all enjoyed a nice break with great company and cold cans of Coke. We made plans to target the same campsite so we could spend our last night on trail together.

The camp host at Boulder Oaks Campground, Tammy, was also an angel. She greeted us by calling us “the feral ones.” The pit toilets she maintained were the cleanest, nicest smelling, most lovely pit toilets we’ve ever seen. She gave us some insights into the difference between southbound and northbound hikers. Northbound hikers are a bit babied. Us feral southbounders love to make fun of them, but mostly because we are jealous.

The trail got relatively easy throughout the afternoon, especially as we got close to Lake Morena County Park.

We blue blazed to the malt shop and got creamsicle malts. This is also where we obtained water for the remainder of the trail. The last 20 miles are dry.

Then we began our last night hike, leaving Lake Morena behind us.

TimTam incited spirited discussion of our favorite snacks that kept us going despite the sleepiness. After a brief climb and steep descent, we hit our last hard ascent of the whole trip. We’re having a lot of lasts these days, it seems, as the end of the trail approaches. Maybe we’re do for a first or a beginning sometime soon.

We camped with our friends, filling the air with laughter and high spirits as we ate dinner and shared some of our favorite memories before crawling into our tents for bed.